Meta Global AI Developer Hackathon 2026
Ten day online hackathon from Meta with a $1,000,000 cash prize pool for indie developers and startups. Apply by 25 October 2026.
The Meta Global AI Developer Hackathon is a ten day online event with a $1,000,000 cash prize pool. Meta invites selected applicants to build with its newest models, including the Muse Spark series, Muse Image, and SAM 3.1, plus open weights models and the Muse Code agent. The hackathon is virtual and free to enter if you are selected.
Every project enters one track. The indie developer track is for individual builders and students, judged on creativity, technical ambition, and whether it works. The startup track is for teams and founders building a product, judged on technical execution and whether it holds up in production. Two themes sit across both tracks. Build for Your World asks you to bring the models into a domain you know. Push the Frontier asks you to use them on problems in software, robotics, manufacturing, energy, materials, and beyond.
Applications opened on 13 October 2026 at 9:00am ET and close on 25 October 2026 at 11:59pm ET, or earlier if 20,000 spots are filled. Review is rolling. Meta scores the project idea and the technical skill shown in the form, with equal weight. Approval notices go out by 9:00am ET on 26 October 2026, when the hackathon begins with a kickoff livestream. Workshops and Discord office hours run from 27 October to 4 November. Project submissions are due by 9:00pm ET on 4 November. Judging runs from 4 to 8 November. The closing ceremony is on 9 November.
The page says the hackathon is open worldwide except where local law prohibits participation or receiving an award, and except people or organisations under US, EU, UN, or UK sanctions, or organized or located in Belarus, China, Russia, Ukraine, Syria, Cuba, North Korea, Iran, or the Crimea, Donetsk, and Luhansk regions of Ukraine. Employees, contractors, and interns of Meta and Cerebral Valley, government affiliated individuals, and their immediate families cannot enter. Apply on the Cerebral Valley event page. Official rules will be published before 26 October 2026.
Quick answers
Is there a cap on who gets in?
Yes. Participation is limited to 20,000 accepted applicants. The portal can close earlier once that number is reached.
When are projects due?
Selected participants submit projects by 9:00pm ET on 4 November 2026.
Are the official rules published?
Not yet. Official rules will be published before the hackathon begins on 26 October 2026, and selected participants must accept them.